Rafael has never raised his voice. Not when kidnapped, not when threatened, not even when he was forced to stay. But now he’s yelling. He turns toward the nurse, whose pulse flashes red in Kane’s HUD.
>ID: RAFAEL GUTIERREZ
>HR: 142 BPM ↑
>CORTISOL: ELEVATED
His brown eyes are wide, fixed on the gun pressed against the girl’s chest, with a hand hovering in the air between them. He hoped never to see that fear on Rafael’s face again. But Kane’s hand tightens around the rifle, shutting the voice out.
“Please.” Rafael sets a hand on the stretcher. “Don’t—she’s hurt. She needs help.”
Kane shouldn’t care what he thinks. This is crew business, and trespassers face the consequences. Yet his usual dismissal catches in his throat. Rafael isn’t some soldier or a techie hardened by the Outer Districts. He’s a corpo nurse. His first instinct is to heal, even when it’s some Natural Order cultistwho’d rather die than let tainted hands touch her. One of the fanatics who blames VitaCorp for the country’s collapse and won’t even carry a gun because it’s “powered corruption.”
“This isn’t about cruelty.” He keeps his tone measured. “Her people tried to burn down our territory—nearly killing one of our own. I need answers. How she got in. When they’ll strike again. That’s how I keep this neighborhood safe.”
He inclines his head toward the girl, trembling yet still sneering. “Because next time, we might not get there fast enough.”
“But—”
Kane cuts him off. “What? Have a better idea?”
“I…I don’t know anything about this,” Rafael admits. “Have you—” He sighs. “Never mind. It’s probably stupid.”
Kane’s jaw tightens. He’s not wrong. Rafael has no experience with interrogations. But watching someone so capable diminish himself stirs unexpected irritation. “Cut that out. I’ve yet to hear you say anything stupid. Tell me. What’s your idea?”
Rafael blinks at him. “Um—” His fingers grip the medical tool around his neck. “At work, when I need patients to cooperate…I try to find common ground. Offer them something they want in exchange. Like dessert privileges…”
Positive reinforcement is hardly revolutionary. It’s standard procedure that the lieutenants follow with new recruits. But when has Kane ever used it himself?
He thinks back. Since Rafael arrived, he’s offered patient explanations instead of sharp commands, allowed questions without shutting them down, and even made small concessions without demanding anything in return.
But that wasn’t conscious. The nurse isn’t from here ordoing this by choice. Yelling at him would accomplish nothing.
This Natural Order girl intentionally snuck into their territory and started a fire, almost killing an elder from the neighborhood. Her commitment is clear in the scars from her former implants and rough palms from wielding blades. But this close, she’s smaller than he expected, barely eighteen at most. More recruit than zealot.
Maybe, just this once, he can borrow the outsider’s approach.
“We’ll try it your way,” Kane says, meeting his eyes briefly before lowering the rifle.
Rafael lets out a breath.
“But if she tries anything, we’re done talking.” Weapon at his side, he pivots toward her. She’s eased since Kane lowered his gun, but her sneer remains. “As for you, what happens if you return home without fulfilling your decree?”
She crosses her arms. “I fulfilled my mission. Your building has been cleansed.” Her voice is confident, but Kane notes the change in her pulse across his overlay.
He shakes his head. “Not well enough.”
Years of defending their border taught Kane exactly how the Natural Order brutalized its failed “brothers” and “sisters.” Often in the form of public beatings and humiliation, all to seek forgiveness to stay in the order.
“But…I could give you something to take back—proof that you infiltrated our territory successfully. Intelligence they’ll value more than a scorched building.”
The girl straightens in her seat. At her side, Rafael glances between them.
“All you have to do is tell me what I need to know.” Kane leans closer. “Right now.”
A scoff escapes her. “And why should I trust you? You could be lying about this ‘information.’ Why would you hand that over?”
“Trust is a luxury we don’t have right now.”